Not applicable to this application.
Not applicable to this application.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to trolling motor mounts and more specifically it relates to a trolling motor mount tool for assisting in the moving of a trolling motor support mount between a lowered position and a raised position.
2. Description of the Related Art
Trolling motor mount units have been in use for years. Trolling motor mount units are mounted to the front of a boat for allowing lowering of a trolling motor into the water or removing a trolling motor from the water as illustrated in FIGS. 4 through 6 of the drawings by reference numeral 14. The motor mount illustrated in FIGS. 4 through 6 is similar to the GATOR MOUNT brand trolling motor mount manufactured by MOTORGUIDE (a subsidiary of BRUNSWICK CORPORATION). See www.motorguide.com for additional information about the GATOR MOUNT. The present invention is designed for the GATOR MOUNT brand trolling motor mount, however the present invention may be utilized upon various other brands of trolling motor mounts. A conventional motor mount has two lockable support positions: a lowered position where the trolling motor is positioned within the water and a raised position where the trolling motor is removed from the water. To move from one position to the other, a user must release the locking pin by pulling upon a pull rope or similar mechanism.
The main problem with conventional motor mounts is that the pull ropes often times break thereby making it difficult to manipulate the position of the motor mount. A further problem is that replacing the pull rope can be costly and time consuming. A further problem is that if the pull rope breaks when the motor mount is in the lowered position, the user must remove the entire trolling motor which can be difficult while in the water.
Examples of patented devices which may be related to the present invention include U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,216 to Hair; U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,166 to Dimalanta; U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,956 to McDavid; U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,221 to Reeves; U.S. Pat. No. 5,725,401 to Smith; U.S. Pat. No. 6,224,437 to Griffith, Sr. et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,835 to Henderson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,453,030 to Broussard; U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,271 to Tyler; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,954,080 to Weaver.
While these devices may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they are not as suitable for assisting in the moving of a trolling motor support mount between a lowered position and a raised position. Trolling motor mount units are prone to pull rope breakage thereby making it difficult to manipulate the positions of the motor mount unit.
In these respects, the trolling motor mount tool according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of assisting in the moving of a trolling motor support mount between a lowered position and a raised position.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of trolling motor mounts now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new trolling motor mount tool construction wherein the same can be utilized for assisting in the moving of a trolling motor support mount between a lowered position and a raised position.
To attain this, the present invention generally comprises a main member having a first cutout and a second cutout, a first arm pivotally attached to the main member, wherein the first arm includes an engaging tube, and a second arm pivotally attached to the main member having an arm cutout. The user utilizes the first cutout and an arm cutout to engage a first locking pin of a motor mount for a trolling motor. The user utilizes the second cutout and the engaging tube of the first arm to engage the second locking pin of the motor mount.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a trolling motor mount tool that will overcome the shortcomings of the prior art devices.
A second object is to provide a trolling motor mount tool for assisting in the moving of a trolling motor support mount between a lowered position and a raised position.
Another object is to provide a trolling motor mount tool that may be utilized upon the GATOR MOUNT brand trolling motor mount manufactured by MOTORGUIDE (a subsidiary of BRUNSWICK CORPORATION).
An additional object is to provide a trolling motor mount tool that is compact in structure for compact storage.
A further object is to provide a trolling motor mount tool that engages the locking pins on a GATOR MOUNT brand trolling motor mount.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become obvious to the reader and it is intended that these objects and advantages are within the scope of the present invention.
To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described within the scope of the appended claims.